The present invention is directed to the field of harvesting. More particularly, the present invention is directed to a hand-held blade sharpener which permits in situ sharpening of blades on wood chippers, forage harvesters, and the like.
Currently, to sharpen blades on equipment used in textiles, lumber manufacturing, OSB board manufacturing and the farming industry, such as fiber processors, chippers, and forage harvesters of various sorts, the blades must be removed from the machine and sharpened in a tabletop-style sharpener. Such disassembly, reassembly obviously is time consuming driving up the cost. Further, the tabletop style sharpeners are themselves quite expensive. Lastly, reducing the handling of particularly the sharpened blades will also reduce the risk of injury to the blade mechanic.
The present invention provides a hand-held sharpener which can sharpen the blades in situ, such that the blades need not be removed, saving significant time, restoring the cutting machine to operating condition more quickly and economically. It is preferred that the hand-held sharpener of the present invention be utilized to back grind the blade so as not to reduce the feed angle on those machines, such as chippers, for example, which rely on the blades to feed the product through the machine.
The hand-held sharpener of the present invention features a) a rotary power tool including i) a handle having an opening extending there through; ii) a body having securement means for receiving attachments, the securement means defining a first longitudinal axis; b) a nose piece threadably attachable to the body through the opening in said handle, the nose piece having i) a first set of guide rollers affixed thereto at a first angle relative to the first longitudinal axis; ii) a second set of guide rollers mounted at a second different angle relative to the first longitudinal axis; whereby the first and second sets of guide rollers engage opposing faces of a blade to be sharpened. Preferably, the second set of guide rollers is secured to a second face plate, the second face plate being mounted to said nose piece in a manner to permit limited pivotal movement relative to the first longitudinal axis making the hand-held blade sharpener self-adjusting.
The second face plate is a semi-circular member and a first one of the second set of guide rollers is mounted on a first side of the first longitudinal axis and a second one of the second set of guide rollers is mounted on a second opposite side of the first longitudinal axis. The first face plate is a semi-circular member opposed to the second face plate and the first set of guide rollers includes a first roller of the first set generally aligned with the first roller of said second set and a second roller of the first set generally aligned with the second roller of the second set. The sharpener further includes adjusting means for altering an angle at which the blade is sharpened. The adjustment means comprising a set of abrasive members including i) a first cylindrical abrasive member; ii) a second abrasive member tapering outwardly from an attachment end; and, iii) a third abrasive member tapering inwardly from an attachment end.
Another aspect of the invention is defined as an attachment for a power tool which has a body with securement means for receiving attachments to convert the power tool to a hand-held blade sharpener, the attachment comprising a) a set of abrasive members; b) a nose piece threadably attachable to the body, the nose piece having i) a first set of guide rollers affixed thereto at a first angle relative to the first longitudinal axis; ii) a second set of guide rollers mounted at a second different angle relative to the first longitudinal axis; whereby the first and second sets of guide rollers engage opposing faces of a blade to be sharpened. The set of abrasive members includes i) a first cylindrical abrasive member; ii) a second abrasive member tapering outwardly from an attachment end; and, iii) a third abrasive member tapering inwardly from an attachment end.
The second set of guide rollers is secured to a second face plate, the second face plate being mounted to the nose piece in a manner to permit limited pivotal movement relative to the first longitudinal axis making the hand-held blade sharpener self-adjusting. The second face plate is a semi-circular member and a first one of the second set of guide rollers is mounted on a first side of the first longitudinal axis and a second one of the second set of guide rollers is mounted on a second opposite side of the first longitudinal axis. The first face plate is a semi-circular member opposed to the second face plate and the first set of guide rollers includes a first roller of the first set generally aligned with said first roller of the second set and a second roller of the first set generally aligned with the second roller of the second set.
Various other features, advantages, and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent after a reading of the following detailed description.